


Where Everybody Knows Your  Name

by FlashBastard



Category: Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Bars and Pubs, Drunk Crowley (Good Omens), Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-10-20 00:44:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20666522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlashBastard/pseuds/FlashBastard
Summary: The pub isn't just a place to get drunk





	Where Everybody Knows Your  Name

The bar didn't get very many new people coming in and Dave was okay with that. He liked his regulars. They were good folks. They would come in and have a pint, or sometimes some shots. They would watch the game on the telly or talk about their day. Some just sat quietly at the bar trying to get over a bad day. And then there was Crowley. 

All of the regulars knew about him. He was very, very strange but he never caused anybody any harm, and he'd been coming to the bar since before Dave bought it. He usually only came in when he was of the mind to get really, really hammered. He could drink like his blood was actually made of alcohol, which always astonished Dave. He didn't mind, though. He never tried to drive when he was completely wasted and he always tipped really well. Dave even set up a little room in the back of the bar so that Crowley could sleep it off if he wanted. Crowley was the only one that got to use the room. 

Usually about halfway through his second bottle of whiskey, he'd start talking to no one in particular. He'd always go on about how he didn't want to be a demon. Or he would rant about the angel that was so clever and yet so stupid. It was pretty obvious to Dave that he was in love with this other man. And apparently the other man just couldn't see it. It always seemed that Crowley came in to get drunk after the two of them had a row of some kind. There were a couple of occasions when Crowley was actually in a good mood when he came to the pub. He had a couple of pints and chatted for a bit and then was on his way. These instances were very rare, though. 

"How's your day going?" Dave would ask. 

"Eh, not too bad." Crowley would reply and then Dave would know to have the beer ready. If he got some kind of unintelligible muttering in return, that's when Dave got the whiskey out. The worst day was the day when Crowley came in carrying a book that looked like it had been set on fire. 

"How's your day going?" Dave asked tentatively. Crowley just looked at him for a moment. Dave had never seen him so completely broken. 

"I lost my best friend." Crowley answered. His voice cracked as he said it. Dave almost wanted to cry. 

"I'm so sorry, mate." Dave replied and then got him a bottle to start him off. Crowley sat down with the bottle and the glass and started drinking. Dave went to the store room and brought up an entire case of the whiskey. On that day Crowley didn't start rambling to no one in particular until after his third bottle. 

Dave was entirely astonished when Crowley seemed to brighten up after a while. This time his rambling was a bit different. He looked like he was actually talking to someone not just chattering to anyone that would listen. And then he was up and out of the bar. It was ten minutes later before he came back in for his keys. Dave was wary to hand them over but he did seem sober enough. 

It was a week later before Crowley came in again. Sometimes there would be months between visits. Dave would always just assume that everything was going good for Crowley and he didn't need his old haunt. Very few people came into the bar on good days. Crowley came in and rather than taking a seat, he walked up to the bar. There was something different about him. His posture was a bit straighter and he wasn't sauntering the way he usually did. It was strange. 

"How's your day going?" Dave asked. 

"Oh, quite lovely actually. Thank you." Crowley smiled and Dave tilted his head. He never talked like that. 

"The usual?" Dave asked. 

"I think perhaps just a glass of wine today." Crowley nodded and then went to sit at a table by the window. Dave was very curious about what was going on because this wasn't like Crowley at all. He never sat by the window sipping wine and watching people as they passed. Dave wasn't nosy, though. He wanted to ask a million questions but he just let it go. 

And then a month went past and Crowley was back in again. He was back to his usual, grumpy self at his usual table with his usual bottle of whiskey. Again, Dave didn't ask any questions. He did notice Crowley's posture suddenly change when a very strange man walked into the bar. 

"I don't know how you pulled it off, Crowley, but you don't frighten me." Hastur said as he stalked over to the table. Stalking was the only way to describe how he walked. 

"Hastur, I have no idea what you're talking about." Crowley looked over the top of his sunglasses at the demon. 

"You bloody well do know." Hastur practically growled. 

"Everything alright, Mr Crowley?" Dave asked from behind the bar. He kept a bat back there for emergencies and had suddenly found the need to wipe it down with the bar towel. 

"This is none of your concern, human." Hastur started to raise a hand. 

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Hastur." Crowley said, getting to his feet. He was starting to get a bit angry. 

"What are you going to do about it, hmmm?" Hastur asked with a little glint in his eye. 

"I think you better go." Marie said from behind Crowley. She and the rest of the bar patrons were standing behind Crowley and they all looked ready to fight. 

"Getting humans to protect you now, Crowley? How pathetic." Hastur shook his head trying to look like he wasn't actually scared. 

"These humans aren't doing anything they don't want to do, Hastur. This...." Crowley gestured to all of the people in the bar. "This is what friendship looks like. You should try it sometime." 

"I think it's most definitely time for you to go." Dave said, coming around from behind the bar with the bat resting on his shoulder. 

"Never underestimate the power of humans in large numbers." Crowley grinned at Hastur but it wasn't a pleasant thing. It was the grin of a predator staring down its prey. 

"This isn't over, Crowley. You won't be around these people all the time. You'll see." Hastur then turned and left the bar. Crowley sank down into his seat, putting his face in his hands. Dave walked over and put a hand on Crowley's shoulder. 

"I really appreciate that but he could have hurt all of you very badly." Crowley said as he looked up at Dave. 

"Nobody gets hurt in my bar." Dave said with a smile. He squeezed Crowley's shoulder and then went back to serving drinks. Everyone had gone back to their regular tables but they all lifted a glass to Crowley, a gesture to show that they had his back. Crowley was suddenly very, very happy that they'd managed to save the world.


End file.
